Arcade History
William Arkush – A name you may not know, but should!
William (Bill) Arkush is not a name many arcade collectors may know. Why? He doesn’t have an industry name like Al Acorn, but Mr. Arkush wrote some of the best, inclusive, and technically sound manuals for great classics like Gun Fight and Sea Wolf. Here is a little bit of his story, and we’re hoping that you can help fill in some of the gaps.
He was the ‘Thomas Edison’ of the arcade game world…
That’s quite a comparison, to say that any arcade game creator had a similar level of genius and creativity to Thomas Edison. But that is the parellel made in this article published in July of 1987 that a reader sent to me. I guarantee you’ll be surprised at the who and I’ll tell you right now its not Nolan Bushnell (Atari), Toru Iwatani (Pacman) or Shigeru Miyamoto (Donkey Kong). Is this image a hint?
The creaky, dusty Atari vault door is showing signs of life
I was recently asked what I would do if suddenly found myself an extremely wealthy individual. Many things would be in the mix, but one activity I might consider would be to head out to California and plop myself in Scott E.’s warehouse. Scott’s ‘Vault’, as I like to call it, is filled with so many Atari goodies, history, and information that it would probably take a lifetime to document it all. Fortunately, Scott has been on a recent rampage – publishing more of this information for all to enjoy – including new production floor photos. (more…)
The lost Williams Vector unearthed!
Back in July some schematics surfaced showing that Williams at one time had a vector in development. I poked around a little bit and got some of the back story on what happened to the project and why it never saw the light of day.
Remember that Bally, Williams, and Capcom documentation?…
In all of its file cabinet glory? Well, James is talking a little bit about that coin op documentation over at the Aussie Arcade forums. You’ll need an account to login and view the thread.
New arcade game documentary movie?
In my mind, King of Kong was the arcade game documentary that opened up some doors for other movies about the hobby to be made. King of Kong combined a great (arguably twisted) story revolving around one of the top ten most popular games of all time and attributed for its success. The Space Invaders: America’s Underground Arcades is a trailer for a documentary about us, the collectors and our passion for collecting these huge wooden cabinets and putting them in our homes. (more…)
General Computer Corp’s Crazy Otto hits Mame in 2010
I don’t follow Mame news all that much, so thanks to Dan of arcadeflyers for the heads up. Apparently early next year emulation of another piece of gaming history will be available for all to play.
